Holiday Cooking & Lifestyle Show Advent Calendar
December 1, 2020
Happy December! There are 24 days until Christmas, which means you have 24 evenings that you can fill with holiday specials all about cooking, baking, and life at home. From cakes to chocolate, from decorating to hosting, each of these shows will bring out your festive spirit. Get ready to binge with this holiday cooking and lifestyle show advent calendar.
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Cooking and design shows are some of my favorites to put on in the background while I’m doing things around the house. During the holiday season, why not get inspired by Christmas-themed shows at the same time? I love working on my own baking and decor projects, absorbing all the new creative ideas. It was so much fun to make this list while working on my tablescape.
There is enough content here to more than fill your days leading up to Christmas. But you can also pick and choose just the shows that sound amazing to you! Also, many of these are available through different streaming services or to buy. Be sure to check out the “how to watch” section under each day. In the calendar, you can see the key at the bottom to help you find your favorites.
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12/1 The Great Food Truck Race: Holiday Hustle
What’s it about? Five food trucks compete against one another in snowy New England to feed bustling crowds around the holidays and ultimately win a grand prize.
How to Watch: Amazon Video, $2.99 per episode, $9.99 for all 4 episodes, or included with a Motortrend subscription
12/2 Outrageous Holiday Houses
What’s it about? Lance Bass visits over-the-top decorated homes across the US and Canada in this 45-minute seasonal special, including a life-size gingerbread house and a themed candy land.
How to Watch: HGTV.com
12/3 Great British Baking Show: Holiday
What’s it about? Your favorite bakers from past seasons of the Great British Baking Show return to create a variety of themed desserts and treats, like snow globe cakes and yule logs.
How to Watch: 2 seasons (4 episodes) are on Netflix, with a new season releasing Friday 12/4
12/4 Holiday Gingerbread Showdown
What’s it about? Nine bakers compete three per episode to create holiday-themed gingerbread structures, such as one inspired by the movie “Elf.” Then the three finalists compete for a grand prize.
How to Watch: 1 season (4 episodes) available on Hulu
12/5 Holiday Crafters Gone Wild
What’s it about? Jay Manuel hosts this 90-minute special where crafting teams compete in holiday DIY challenges, such as table-scapes, trees, and houses to compete for a grand prize.
How to Watch: Watch on demand HGTV by signing in with your TV provider information
12/6 Decorating Disney: Holiday Magic
What’s it about? Go behind the scenes at Disney parks, Walt Disney World and Disneyland to watch the magical transformation into the holiday magic.
How to Watch: 1-hour special available on Disney+
12/7 Cake Wars Christmas
What’s it about? Watch seven teams compete in holiday themed cake challenges, such as a reimagining of Santa’s sleigh, and a modern take on the Grinch.
How to Watch: Amazon Video, $2.99 per episode or a total of $24.98 for all 12 episodes across 2 seasons
12/8 Christmas Cookie Challenge
What’s it about? Three rounds of cookie competition challenge five bakers in each episode, with challenges such as 3D winter scenes and giant cookie puzzles.
How to Watch:Â 1 season (7 episodes) available on Hulu
Holiday baking, decor, cooking, and hosting specials can count you down until Christmas with this fun advent calendar!
12/9 Nailed It! Holiday
What’s it about? A quirky competition show featuring some very clearly non-professional chefs, facing impossible seasonal themed challenges to create hot mess desserts.
How to Watch:Â 2 seasons (13 episodes) available on Netflix
12/10 Giada’s Holiday Handbook
What’s it about? Join celebrity chef Giada de Laurentis as she cooks and hosts her way through the whole holiday season, featuring themed parties filled with delicious drinks, desserts, entrees, and apps.
How to Watch: 4 seasons (24 episodes) available on Hulu
12/11 Biggest Little Christmas Showdown
What’s it about? Design teams of three work together to create miniature versions of themed holiday homes. The finalists compete for a cash prize and a full-size vacation-home version of their design.
How to Watch:Â New episodes airing Fridays on HGTV
12/12 The Great Christmas Light Fight
What’s it about? Families and neighborhoods go to holiday extremes to decorate homes with extravagant Christmas light displays, competing for a cash prize.
How to Watch: Amazon Video, $2.99 per episode, or $14.99 each for seasons 2-6
12/13 Sugar Rush: Christmas
What’s it about? Holiday-themed competition challenges bakers in themes such as interactive advent calendars and Nutcracker inspired. Plus celebrity guests judge each episode.
How to Watch:Â 2 seasons (12 episodes) available on Netflix
12/14 Celebrity Holiday Homes
What’s it about? Get inspired by the real and really decorated homes of your favorite celebs, such as Tiffani Theissan, Wayne Brady, and Haylie Duff
How to Watch: 7 episodes available on HGTV
12/15 America’s Test Kitchen: Home for the Holidays
What’s it about? Join your Test Kitchen favorite chefs as they come together to reveal all of their holiday specialties and dishes.
How to Watch: Hour-long special on Amazon Video for $2.99
12/16 Great American Baking Show: Holiday Edition
What’s it about? Breads, cakes, cookies and pastries challenge bakers in this elimination-style challenge, featuring festive themes and flavors.
How to Watch: 2 Seasons (7 episodes) available on Hulu
12/17 Disney’s Fairy Tale Weddings Holiday Magic
What’s it about? The holidays at Disney get even more magical when there are weddings and proposals! This special edition features the gorgeous Disney Christmas decor with plenty of love.
How to Watch: 40-minute special, available on Disney+
12/18 You’ll Be Home for Christmas
What’s it about? A real estate agent and Santa impersonator will help families find their forever homes during the holiday season. Extra festive touches and decor included.
How to Watch:Â Premieres on HGTV at 12/18 10pm ET
12/19 Christmas Cookie Builds
What’s it about? Forget gingerbread houses, two Salt Lake City bakers build holiday scenes and life size creations from cookies and edible treats.
How to Watch:Â 1 season (6 episodes) available on Cooking Channel
12/20 Buddy vs. Christmas
What’s it about? The Cake Boss competes against a variety of artists and designers, such as a glassblower and Lego experts, along with their teams to impress the judges with the most festive creations.
How to Watch: Airing on the Food Network, or episodes $2.99 on Amazon Video
12/21 Holiday Baking Championship
What’s it about? Bakers compete elimination style in a series of seasonal challenges, such as working with festive flavors like eggnog, or creating plenty of pies
How to Watch: 5 Seasons (33 episodes) available on Hulu
12/22 Holiday Wars
What’s it about? Teams of cake decorators and sugar artists compete to create impressive edible art, with themes like elf auditions and holiday parades.
How to Watch:Â Amazon Video episodes for $2.99 or 2 seasons for a total of $14.98
12/23 Christmas Chowdown
What’s it about? Top Chef fan favorite Carla Hall brings her “cooking with love” philosophy to the holiday season, with plenty of scrumptious goodies.
How to Watch: Available on Cooking Channel
12/24 Holiday Home Makeover with Mr. Christmas
What’s it about? An interior decorator known as Mr. Christmas and him team help transform family homes for the holidays, to bring a little extra magic to their lives.
How to Watch: 1 season (4 episodes) available on Netflix
I love this so much! I like to watch cooking shows while I’m baking. I just finished Great British Bake Off and I’ve been saving the holiday seasons for Christmas cookie baking so I’m excited to get through those! But I was wondering what I would watch when I finished that so I’m excited to have some options now.
Thanks for sharing, this idea looks a great idea 🙂